Just Outside the Light
by Letta
Summary: Kurama wakes up beaten and bloodied in a cave with serious gaps in his memory, meanwhile the search for him is just beginning. Oh my! HieiKura COMPLETE.
1. Prologue

Well, well, well. I'm back. Hi everyone! Ya miss me? I missed you.  
  
Just a short note for no discernable reason: I just saw Blood: The Last Vampire. It was worth my time.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own it. Oh, and the title has relatively no relevance or bearing on the story.  
  
Author: Letta, of course!  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: Well, I don't really have any for this chapter, but tune in next time, and I'll give you a whole list.  
  
Pairings: none so far  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
Kurama awoke groggily, dizzy with pain. He didn't know where he was or why he was there, which usually never helped a situation. In fact, he found he didn't know much of anything. Except that it was dark and the ground was cold and hard.  
  
There was a throbbing at his temple and he unconsciously reached up a hand to hold his head, frowning when it felt wet and sticky. He lowered his hand to look at it, not being able to really discern what was on his hand through sight, since there was little light to aid him, but he could smell blood. He frowned in the darkness, noting that slight pain that accompanied the expression.  
  
Slowly, achingly, he sat up, a wave of dizziness washing over him as he did so. He was aware of a slight current of fresh air and began crawling in the direction it came from. Every movement hurt, but he refused to give up, so he pushed himself ever further until at last, he saw light up ahead.  
  
It seemed to take all of forever before Kurama let himself spill out of the mouth of the cave, his collapsed limbs shouting their protests to him as he lay, panting for breath. Through his half-slitted eyes he saw his silver hair stained with blood before blackness flooded over him.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yusuke chewed his lip uncertainly. He hadn't heard from Kurama for days, and when Hiei had showed up, perched in a tree outside his window to tell him that Kurama was, in fact, missing, he felt the first traces of fear and anger.  
  
He suspected he would have known about this sooner, Shiori would have at least called, looking for Kurama, but she was out of town for two weeks. So, with Kurama's mother oblivious to her son's disappearance, there had been no searching. As for when Kurama had gone missing, well, that was another matter.  
  
When Hiei had told him about the kitsune's absence, the two went over to the Minamino residence to search for any sort of clues. After Hiei snuck in the bedroom window and let Yusuke in through the front door, they began a thorough search. There were no signs of any sort of struggle, and as far as they could tell, Kurama had not packed to leave for anywhere. There was nothing in the house to suggest anything had happened to the redhead.  
  
The pair had contacted Koenma and told him what they knew, which hadn't taken long. With the help of the Junior Lord of the Reikei, they learned that Kurama had not been to school for three days. Aside from that, they had little else to go on.  
  
A search of the Reikei records had shown nothing amiss in the time from when Kurama was let out of school until his absence the next morning. The area had nothing unusual to explain the disappearance. It was almost as if Kurama had faded completely from the Earth.  
  
Now, instead of looking for him, the Reikei Tantei was standing in Koenma's office, doing nothing. Yusuke didn't like it one bit. A quick glance at Hiei would have told the casual observer nothing, but Yusuke had tuned in to the fire youkai somewhere along the line, and from the tight grip Hiei had on the handle of his sword, Yusuke knew he felt the same way. The jaganshi's face was expressionless, eyes cold, glaring ahead, but Yusuke was able to read deep frustration and concern over the kitsune.  
  
They could do nothing, so they waited.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Kurama woke again, the pain that had racked his body before was more subdued now. No longer was every fiber of his being saturated in agony, now it was simply most of them. His face was resting on cool dirt, one golden eye swollen shut while the other keenly searched for any danger. He admitted to himself how stupid he was earlier by allowing himself to be overcome in plain sight of anyone who might pass by, but rather than dwell on that, he pushed himself up to lean against the cool rock of the cave he had crawled out of. He wasn't sure how long he had been out, but then, he supposed it didn't really matter.  
  
He was in a clearing enclosed by large, thick trees. They seemed to keep out any visitors, so perhaps he was safe for the time being, but then again, perhaps not.  
  
He was hungry.  
  
That wasn't such a problem; there was a large fruit tree a few feet away from where he was resting. Somewhere out of the recesses of his mind, a small voice seemed to be telling him that the fruit was bitter in taste, but safe to eat. That was enough for him.  
  
He removed a seed from his blood caked hair, watching it grow into a rose, and from there, into a whip. He flicked his wrist expertly, watching the whip snap out and through the trunk of the tree, watched as it crashed, and picked up one of the many large fruits that had rolled near him.  
  
He bit into it, his tongue shrinking away from the bitter juice as he slowly chewed, his jaw protesting the movement.  
  
There were questions racing through his mind that he could not answer.  
  
He knew his name. it was the last thing said to him. He had been lying on the ground and someone, a male. he didn't know who. had said, "You're finally dead, Kurama."  
  
Quite obviously, whoever had been talking to him didn't make sure of that.  
  
The second thing he knew was that he had to get back, because 'she' would worry. Where he was supposed to go, he had no idea, who 'she' was -he had even less of a clue.  
  
The third thing he knew was his rose whip. He had it, and he could use it.  
  
His name, he had to get back to her, and his rose whip. Was there anything else he knew? He looked at the fruit in his hand. It wasn't worth putting on his list of things he knew.  
  
He searched through his darkened memory for anything else, but there wasn't much he could remember. A vague image of two boys with dark hair, one with brown eyes, the other with red -that was the most his mind could dig up. Did they have names? He concentrated, but was defeated in the end. He didn't know if they were friends or enemies, and he currently had no way of finding out.  
  
He sighed and closed his open eye, leaning back in annoyance.  
  
Suddenly that eye shot open again as the ears atop his head picked up the faintest sound, now straining to hear it again. His mind made a note of his second stupid move: not moving. He should have left the cave as far behind as he could, since someone else had known he was there, even if they had believed he was dead.  
  
There.  
  
Ahead of him and slightly to his left. There was a rustling noise. Kurama readied his whip, golden eye narrowing in anticipation.  
  
Suddenly a white clad figure leapt into the clearing, and stopped short upon seeing the kitsune. Cautiously, the demon walked closer until Kurama could clearly make out her features. He narrowed his eye, and tightened the grip on his whip.  
  
"My, what a pretty kitsune," she said, "or rather, you would be if you weren't all cut up."  
  
Kurama remained silent, watching every move the demoness made. Although she hadn't made any threatening moves yet, that was no guarantee that she was of good intentions.  
  
"If I were you, I'd calm down. You like hell and I don't think popping any veins is going to help you," she said, placing a hand on her hip.  
  
Kurama was about to reply when a wave of blackness swept over his vision. /Not now!/ It was never a good idea to pass out in the face of a potential threat, but unfortunately for our dear kitsune, fate decided to screw him.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Well, it's short. Just a bit of a teaser, I'm afraid. I really don't know where this fic is going, but, uh, any suggestions are welcome. Hell, I'm not even sure what genre this will be!  
  
I'm going to go away now. 


	2. Chapter 2

The wait wasn't too long, was it?  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own it, but I do own about a hundred little cartoon doodles!  
  
Author: Letta, of course!  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: I lied last time when I said I'd give you a list of warnings.  
  
Pairings: none so far  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
The three accounted for members of the Reikei Tantei were trudging through a Makai forest. The only piece of information that could be dug up was that someone had seen a silver haired kitsune ambushed. It had been a costly tidbit, and Koenma had not been happy to pay it.  
  
When a kaeru demon had shown up escorted to Koenma's office, no one was quite sure what to make of it. Then when he had sworn that he knew something of Kurama's disappearance, they had been more than eager to hear it. When the kaeru had named his price. Hiei had gone for his throat, threatening that if he didn't tell them immediately, heads would, more or less, roll. The demon had then pointed out that if he was dead, they'd know nothing.  
  
In the end, Koenma had paid it, the kaeru named Kiri forest, and left. Hiei had grimaced because it was the largest forest in Makai, one that was equal in size to all of Brazil.  
  
Now, here they were, searching for any sign of a red or silver haired Kurama. Yusuke kept glancing at Hiei, noting the hidden signs of worry. Hiei kept glaring at Yusuke for glancing at him. Kuwabara, walking behind the two .well, he was just being Kuwabara.  
  
"Is there something wrong with my face, detective?" Hiei asked, annoyance evident in his tone.  
  
"No."  
  
"Then stop looking at me."  
  
"Hey guys!" Kuwabara yelled, running up to the pair, "I sense something!" All three halted, and tensed themselves, feeling, listening, looking for anything out of the ordinary.  
  
A shot of gray fired from the trees, aimed straight at Yusuke's throat.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Kurama woke once more, no longer keeping score, to find himself not dead. This came as a mixture of shock and relief. Why he felt this way, he wasn't entirely sure.  
  
"I see you're awake," a white blur said from somewhere to the right. Kurama blinked a few times, focusing his vision and noting that he could now see out of both eyes. That was an improvement.  
  
The white blur turned out to be the demon from before, as he expected.  
  
/Pretty./  
  
He could feel his eyebrows scrunch down as he looked beyond her to note that he was no longer in the clearing, but in some sort of hut.  
  
"Who are you," he asked, his voice slightly hoarse from disuse.  
  
"Leiko. Who are you?"  
  
He hesitated.  
  
"Kurama."  
  
He watched her arch a snowy white eyebrow, but she said nothing. Instead, she shoved a bowl of some sort of steaming liquid into his hands. Kurama stared down at it, distrustfully.  
  
"Idiot. If I wanted to kill you, I would've done it already," she said, sitting down next to the bedding he was on.  
  
"Why are you helping me? Don't you think that once I'm healed, I might kill you?" Better to get what was on his mind out in the open.  
  
"It had crossed my mind."  
  
"You didn't answer my first question," he pointed out. Leiko looked at him, green eyes lazily half closed.  
  
"I noticed. I was more a spur of the moment thing. You see, I was hunting for my supper, and the smell of your blood was scaring away all the game. If I wanted my private hunting grounds to remain hunting grounds, you had to be removed. Besides, I wanted to know why you were on my property. Satisfied?"  
  
"Your property?" he asked, this time being the one to arch an eyebrow.  
  
"Yes, mine. I usually kill unwanted intruders, but someone seemed to already try that with you."  
  
"I don't suppose you'd know who that someone was?" he asked, taking a tentative sip from the bowl, ears twitching at the walnutty taste.  
  
"You mean you don't?" she countered, a look of surprise crossing her visage.  
  
"I don't really remember anything. at all. Other than my name."  
  
"So you have no clues as to who worked you over?"  
  
"Only that it was a male."  
  
"Sucks to be you," she said, standing and leaving the room.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Alika looked at the demon seated across from her.  
  
"You're sure he's dead?" she asked.  
  
"Youko Kurama will never wake again. You have my word. Unfortunately, I also lost my partner."  
  
"Oh, well that's good!" she said, smiling brightly. If there was one thing Krosoin demoness loved, it was good news like that. "I don't suppose you managed to get his power for me?"  
  
"Uh, no. You never taught me how to do that," Yukio said, shifting somewhat uncomfortably. He wasn't entirely if she meant it was good news that Kurama was dead, or his partner.  
  
"That's too bad. I guess you can't win 'em all." She shifted her gaze to the fire separating them for a few seconds before flopping backwards onto the hay that made up her bed. "I'm tired."  
  
"Aren't you going to teach me how to steal someone's power?" Yukio asked, confused.  
  
"Yeah, sure. Goodnight."  
  
Yukio blinked a few times before soft snores reached his ears. Sometimes it didn't pay enough to be this woman's personal assassin.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Hiei flitted in front of Yusuke, making fifteen slashes with his sword before anyone could blink.  
  
"You're getting sloppy, detective," he said, landing softly.  
  
"I saw you draw your sword, so I didn't see the point in getting my hands dirty," Yusuke said. Behind them, Kuwabara had his spirit sword ready, slashing through the air at invisible enemies, challenging anyone to come out of hiding.  
  
"So what was. that?" Yusuke asked, glancing at what remained of their attacker.  
  
"A Makai bat. A stupid demon that feeds on the flesh of others."  
  
"Hiei, can I ask you a question?" Yusuke began.  
  
"You just did."  
  
"Well, I'm going to ask you another one. We've been wandering for hours without finding a trace of Kurama. Isn't there an easier way to go about this? I mean, we don't even have anything to go on other than to look in this forest."  
  
"What would you suggest, detective?" Hiei asked, eyeing Yusuke.  
  
"Anything other than what we're doing. This isn't working!"  
  
"Well we can't give up," Kuwabara said, butting in. By now he had put his spirit sword away and was no longer threatening the air.  
  
"I suggest we keep walking until we think of something else," Hiei said, before flitting away. It was his way of saying the conversation was over.  
  
"Hey, where'd that shrimp go?"  
  
"Someplace where we can't see him," Yusuke muttered, "Well, you coming?" The two picked up their pace again, every once in awhile catching a glimpse of black in a tree only to blink and have it disappear.  
  
The two humans began talking about fighting before switching over to insults. It wasn't long after that when Kuwabara inexplicably found himself in a headlock, courtesy of the great Urameshi.  
  
Occasionally Hiei would reappear to report what lay ahead of them, which was usually nothing of considerable interest, but Yusuke had the nagging suspicion that it was when the fire youkai found himself the most worried about the kitsune that he would return. Once he had even caught an anxious look on Hiei's face, catching his eyes and holding them in a bit of a staring match before Hiei would flit away.  
  
This only served to make Yusuke worry, because if Hiei was worried, than he certainly should be. In turn, Kuwabara sensed the tension in the air and seemed to catch the infectious anxiety himself.  
  
It was probably because of this that they suddenly found themselves surrounded.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
"Koenma!" Botan called out, rushing into the junior lord's office. The fact that he was hidden behind a stack of paperwork did nothing to keep her from hastily blurting out what she had to say.  
  
"One of the other fairy girls brought in a new arrival about two days ago who was killed in Kiri forest. Apparently he had been fighting a silver haired kitsune! After a little investigation on my part, I learned he was hired to kill Kurama, and I found out where exactly he was attacked!" she finished, breathlessly, waiting for a response.  
  
A slight rustling from behind the stacks of papers produced the head of George.  
  
"Actually, Koenma's on a bathroom break right now." ~ ` ~ ` ~ ` A/N: How's that?  
  
Thanks to Hiei-fireyoukia (Alika was borne because of her) and Deb (she likes fights, I like fights, there'll be some fights) for their suggestions!  
  
Oh, and for the information of anyone who was wondering. Kiri means fog. I had a few other names I was toying with, but that one worked the best for my purposes. So, in Japanese (don't hold me to this) Fog Forest would be: Kiri no Hayashi, hayashi meaning forest.  
  
Anyway, the suggestion box is still open. 


	3. Chapter 3

The wait wasn't too long, was it?  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own it, but then, there are a lot of things I don't own. Say for instance, a hover car.  
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: Violence  
  
Pairings: none so far  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
Kurama eyed the plant intertwined with his leg suspiciously. It had been there since he had most recently awoken. Not to mention his 'hostess' had not shown hide nor hair since asking who had attacked him. If his sense of smell served him correctly, she was nowhere near. Whether she was out hunting or dead, he hadn't the slightest clue. True enough, her scent lingered, but it wasn't fresh.  
  
The kitsune eyed his leg again. It was vine-like and he could feel it pulse with energy. It wasn't hurting him; in fact, it seemed to be doing the exact opposite. If anything, his leg felt like it was healing. He hadn't even noticed before how pulpy it looked. Now, with little green tendrils kneading their way in between and around exposed muscles, the pain was actually subsiding. For some reason he couldn't quite place, this seemed to be familiar, or at least had some sort of significance.  
  
As he watched his leg in a type of morbid fascination, he could see the achingly slow repairs take place. At the rate the vine was going, his leg would be healed in a matter of hours. Also, the vine seemed to release some sort of numbing agent into his system, as he could feel very little.  
  
Then, a familiar scent began to tickle his nose. Leiko was coming back, and at a surprisingly quick speed. In fact, there wasn't much warning before a door flew open from somewhere beyond his room, inviting a cooling breeze to trace a path through the hut. A moment later, he heard the soft click of the door shutting and padded footsteps coming towards him.  
  
"Recognize this?" Leiko asked, tossing a plastic rectangle onto his lap from her position in the doorway.  
  
Kurama looked down at it, eyes narrowed as he picked it up. There was writing on it, and a picture of a striking red-haired boy.  
  
"Student identification. Minnamino Shuiichi." he said, mouth vocalizing the characters.  
  
"So you can read it. That's not exactly an ordinary foreign language, at least not around here. It's from ningenkai."  
  
Kurama looked up sharply, his penetrating gaze landing on the demon across the small room.  
  
"I found it in the area where I found you."  
  
His gaze turned back down to the card in his hands, staring at the picture of the boy. He seemed so familiar.  
  
"Leiko. what kind of demon are you?"  
  
If the question surprised her, she didn't show it.  
  
"I'm from Nekonin. I'm a neko, an animal spirit like you."  
  
"Where are we now?"  
  
"We're in Kiri forest."  
  
"Earlier, you had said I was on your private hunting grounds. do you own the land we're on?"  
  
"I claimed it as my territory, if that's what you mean. Nekos are mostly solitary creatures and they hunt in large areas. I'd say it's common knowledge and that you should know it, but under the circumstances."  
  
"Basically you're saying you're this area's predator, right?"  
  
"In a matter of speaking, yes. I'm not the only one, but I am the most powerful."  
  
"Now I'm here. I'm a predator as well, and you're healing me?" he asked, gesturing to the vine.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Didn't I already say why?"  
  
"Yes, but you went to go inspect where I was attacked. You brought this back," he said, holding up the ID card, "what's the rest of it?" he finished, eyeing her accusingly.  
  
Leiko smirked as she met his gaze.  
  
"Simple. I'm the most powerful predator in the area, and as such, I have certain duties. A fairly strong demon is turned into mincemeat on my lands, saying to me that I have competition. If another unknown predator crosses into my territory, I must hunt them down and kill them. I don't want my game over-hunted or scared away by dead kitsunes. So, you, my brain-damaged friend, are my key to finding them. I will heal you, we will kill them and everyone's happy."  
  
"Are you sure they're just other predators?"  
  
"No, I think they went after you for a reason. I just don't want every demon who thinks they can intrude on my territory to think they can get away with it. It's the principle of the matter."  
  
"What if I don't agree?" Kurama asked.  
  
"Kitsunes have a vengeful streak," she said, walking out of the room to leave Kurama to stare back at the redhead on the card in his hands.  
  
So familiar.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yusuke and Kuwabara stood back to back, readying themselves for attack. They had stumbled onto a pack of wolf demons. Why Hiei hadn't reported that was a mystery.  
  
/Where is Hiei, anyway?/ Yusuke thought to himself. He hadn't seen any glimpses of black for awhile.  
  
If Hiei wasn't around, it was possible they were in more trouble than they could handle. Yusuke briefly tried to sense out Hiei, but it was as if the fire youkai had disappeared into thin air.  
  
Yusuke braced himself for the slightest twitching of any of the pack surrounding them, ready to attack first and ask questions later.  
  
A sudden nudge in the back nearly had him jumping out of his skin.  
  
/Kuwabara./ He let out a breath of relief at the realization, noting how erratically his heart was pounding. He turned ever so slightly to look at the offending elbow, to notice that it was lightly spasming. Yusuke blinked before realizing the jerks were intentional. Slowly, he let his eye travel in the direction that the elbow was pointing to.  
  
There he saw two narrowed red eyes hidden amongst the foliage and the silent sweep of something black.  
  
/Hiei./  
  
*  
  
*  
  
*  
  
A/N: You know, I had this typed up for two weeks, but due to computer problems of my own, I figured I better just send out what I have and worry about the rest later. I just hate sending out such a short chapter. 


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own it, nor do I own any free time.  
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, possibly AU- it's up to you.  
  
Pairings: none so far  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
Yusuke smirked arrogantly. Between his spirit gun, Kuwabara's spirit sword, and Hiei's blood lust, these wolf demons were in for one hell of a surprise. He looked around, and saw one demon that looked way too eager. The spirit detective raised him right arm and winked.  
  
"Spirit gun!"  
  
The energy enveloped the demon, tearing him apart.  
  
As if on cue, Kuwabara whipped out his spirit sword, and a sudden breeze followed by a few thumps led into a world of confusion for the hapless pack. Yusuke ducked as a demon flew over his head, rolling to the ground to end up snarling at him. He grinned and shot off his spirit gun.  
  
The spirit detective whipped his head around to look for another demon to fight and blinked. Kuwabara and Hiei were standing amongst twenty or so hacked up demons, arguing about how Hiei had killed a demon that Kuwabara had been fighting.  
  
Yusuke hadn't expected the fight to be over so quickly. He was disappointed. With a sigh, he shoved his hands in his pockets and figured they might as well keep going.  
  
He rolled his eyes as he walked past the bickering pair.  
  
"C'mon kiddies, we've got distance to cover."  
  
"Kiddies?" Hiei asked.  
  
"Well," Yusuke stopped and turned around to face the fire jaganshi, "you are acting like children." He smirked and turned back on his heel, walking away leaving the other two to follow.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Leiko walked into the room, waiting for Kurama to look at her. He had been staring at the student id since she had left the room over an hour ago. His ears had twitched when she entered, telling her that he was fully aware of her presence. When he finally did look up, she spoke.  
  
"I'm leaving. A wolf pack was slaughtered."  
  
He looked at her a moment. Her ears were slightly pressed back against the top of her head, indicating anger or annoyance. She obviously wasn't happy about having so many attacks in her territory in such a short amount of time.  
  
"Why are you telling me?"  
  
"In case there's a connection between this and your attack," she said, looking even more annoyed. "Though I plan to kill whoever it was that did this."  
  
"Hn."  
  
She left the room, leaving him to stare at the card in his hands again.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yusuke wiped the sweat from his brow. Hiei had stopped flitting amongst the trees and was now walking with them again. He hadn't said anything about how they had blindly walked into a pack of wolf demons or why he hadn't warned them. Yusuke smiled slightly, knowing why. Hiei had been caught off-guard too.  
  
That had been half an hour ago.  
  
When Kuwabara stopped and Hiei disappeared again, he immediately froze, glancing around for any unseen enemies. Then it hit him. An enormous power washed over his senses, telling him that an S-class demon was very near. He steadied himself, switching into a fighting stance.  
  
He watched as a white-haired demoness walked calmly from between some trees, clothes matching her hair. She had ears atop her head, and a tail curling and uncurling behind her. She looked pissed.  
  
Her cat-eyes focused sharply on Yusuke, as a large white demon cat bounded up to her side, growling lowly at him. Kuwabara stepped up to his side, standing stiffly.  
  
"Who are you?" she demanded, angrily.  
  
"Glad you asked. My name's Urameshi Yusuke, spirit detective," he said, pointing his thumb to his chest as he announced his title.  
  
"And I'm Kuwabara Kazuma," the redhead added, standing proudly.  
  
She raised her eyebrows.  
  
"I guess it would be illegal to kill you. but only if I get caught," she said.  
  
Yusuke sweat dropped.  
  
"Uh, why do you want us dead?" Kuwabara asked.  
  
"You're hunting on my territory."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"You killed a wolf pack," she accused, eyes narrowing dangerously.  
  
"They surrounded us! What were we supposed to do? Say, 'Hey, my left leg is especially tender?'" Yusuke yelled.  
  
"Do you think I care?"  
  
"Why do you care?"  
  
"This is my territory, and I really don't like competition."  
  
Yusuke groaned, gritting his teeth in annoyance. He shot a nasty look over to the demoness. He was never an extremely articulate person, at least not diplomatically. However, when it came to shooting one's mouth off and being a smartass, he was your go-to guy.  
  
"We're just passing through," Kuwabara said.  
  
"I'm sure, but right now, I'm not allowing any trespassers. You see, there have been a couple of attacks around here lately."  
  
"Like what?" Yusuke asked, suddenly interested.  
  
"A kistune I found. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that?" she asked, her voice held a note of accusation.  
  
"A kitsune?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Say, Yusuke, do you think.?" Kuwabara asked quietly. The spirit detective looked at him, a look of hope passing through his eyes. If it was Kurama.  
  
"Hey lady! Did this kitsune have silver hair?"  
  
Her eyes narrowed even more if it was possible.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Is he alive or."  
  
"Dead. Are you responsible?"  
  
Yusuke's eyes widened as his mind grasped what she had said. Beside him, Kuwabara stiffened. If it had been Kurama, and it probably was if it was the same area. silver-haired kitsunes were rare enough. then. He dropped to his knees.  
  
"No. Kurama." he said quietly. He looked up at her, eyes growing moist, as if she could change what she said, then angrily back at the ground. His hands fisted at his sides and he raised them to smash them back into the ground, releasing his sudden need to hit something. He stayed there for a moment fighting back tears, feeling Kuwabara's hand on his shoulder and the demoness' eyes on him.  
  
Then he looked up at her, voice low and dangerous, determination in his eyes.  
  
"Who did it? I'll kill them."  
  
She nodded slightly to herself.  
  
"I take it, that it wasn't you."  
  
"Why the hell would I want Kurama dead?!"  
  
She walked up to him, stride brisk, until she stopped about three feet away, her demon cat trailing behind warily, occasionally sniffing at the ground. She kneeled, meeting the detective's gaze before she spoke. Her voice was quiet, just above a whisper as if she was afraid someone else might hear.  
  
"I lied. He's alive. I just wanted to know whether or not it was you. See, I intend to kill the predator who intruded on my territory."  
  
"What about the wolf pack?" Kuwabara blurted out.  
  
Her eyes snapped to him as the spirit detective yelled out his name angrily.  
  
"You do realize that was an extremely stupid thing to bring up, don't you?"  
  
The redhead blushed furiously in embarrassment, wisely deciding not to say anything further.  
  
"I'll be willing to let that slide if you can find me the intruders," she said.  
  
Yusuke looked at her sharply. She was willing to let them get away with 'hunting' in her territory in exchange for information. He didn't know why, but if she knew where Kurama was, he'd be willing to cooperate in any way possible.  
  
"We don't know who attacked him yet," Yusuke said, carefully.  
  
"Well neither does he."  
  
The two humans looked at each other questioningly. It was a cryptic answer that neither of them could guess the meaning behind.  
  
The sudden appearance of a black cloaked figure behind the demoness distracted their attention.  
  
The cat youkai, sensing another presence, spun around, then her eyes widened in shock.  
  
"Hiei!"  
  
"Leiko."  
  
"Where the hell's my money?!"  
  
*  
  
*  
  
*  
  
A/N: So this took much longer than it needed to for me to post. You have my word that the next chapter won't be quite so far away. Anyway, questions, comments? Suggestions? Requests? I'm versatile.  
  
Oh, and eventually I plan to get back to that whole Alika deal. like next chapter. 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I think we all know by now that I hold no claim over the YYH universe.  
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, possibly AU- it's up to you.  
  
Pairings: none so far  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
Hiei, Yusuke, and Kuwabara shuffled inside the room, uncertainly. Their eyes saw a silver-haired kitsune staring at a plastic card of some sort. The fox didn't even bother to look up at the sounds of their entrance, completely ignoring their presence. It was when Leiko pushed her way past the three males to stand over the youko that he finally raised his head. He looked at her, still not bothering to bestow the favor of his attention on the other three.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I brought you some guests," she said.  
  
For the first time since their arrival, Kurama looked at the three boys, then he looked back at the demoness.  
  
"Who are they?"  
  
The air was suddenly thick with shock around the three guests.  
  
"They claim to know you," she said, then turned around and left the room, roughly pushing aside Kuwabara who was too late to notice he was in her way, causing Hiei and Yusuke to snicker.  
  
"I don't like that lady," Kuwabara said, rubbing his newly tender arm as he looked after her.  
  
"So there is something we agree on," Hiei commented, suddenly striding forward to Kurama's bed, who was watching them all warily. For a moment the two demons stared at each other, warily contemplating the other, both waiting for the first move.  
  
Suddenly, Hiei snorted.  
  
"You don't remember us at all, do you?"  
  
Kurama's gaze turned sharp, and he hesitated. A quick glance over to Yusuke showed the barest trace of recognition in his golden eyes before his gaze flitted back to the fire demon.  
  
"You look familiar," the youko ventured to say to Hiei, "and so does he," he said, pointing over to the spirit detective.  
  
"That's a start," Yusuke said, flashing a grin.  
  
"Do you remember anything else?" Hiei's harsh voice cut through.  
  
"Not really."  
  
"What happened?" the jaganshi pressed.  
  
"I was attacked, that's all I know."  
  
The kitsune narrowed his eyes, laying back down on the bed and waving his guests away. He closed his eyes. The three in the room shrugged to themselves and quietly left, deciding to let the youko rest.  
  
It was when their footsteps could barely be heard that Kurama opened his eyes and went back to staring at the card still clutched in his hands. Those three seemed friendly enough, but for all he knew, they could have been the ones to attack him.  
  
/For all I know, Leiko was the one to attack me./ He quickly shook his head as he remembered that his attacker had been male.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
"So what do you think?" Yusuke asked his friends, looking at them, open for ayn suggestions.  
  
"I think he suffered some sort of head injury."  
  
"Yeah, that's what I had figured," Yusuke admitted. They were seated in a small room, obviously reserved for company. From what they had seen of the rest of the hut, this was the most 'civilized' room by far. It was outfitted with heavy curtains, pulled backed from the windows they guarded by ties on either side. The ground below them was covered with painted mats, depicting different scenes of Makai. They sat on fluffed pillows around a dark mahogany table ornately carved with pictures of various wild game. On the table, in front of where each sat was a cup of tea resting on a bamboo coaster and some sort of delicacy resting in a bamboo bowl that Yusuke couldn't begin to guess at what it was.  
  
Hiei, on the other hand, had looked ravenously at them when his eyes first laid on them and had his hand on his before he had even finished sitting down. A platter also made of bamboo held more of them, which were quickly disappearing thanks to the fire jaganshi.  
  
Leiko, who had led them into the room, bid them to relax, and gave Hiei a dark look, had since left, leaving her guests to discuss whatever they needed. Where she had gone was anyone's guess.  
  
"Do you think Yukina could heal him?" Kuwabara asked as he timidly took a sip of the tea, not quite trusting their 'gracious' hostess. Hiei looked up sharply, but the action was missed by the tall redhead.  
  
Yusuke gave Hiei a considering look, then spoke. "It's worth a shot."  
  
This caused the jaganshi to glare at him in turn.  
  
"Well let's face it," Yusuke began, "if Yukina can help him get his memories back, it's worth it. Otherwise, we can ask Koenma about it, see what he can do."  
  
"I say we ask Koenma first."  
  
"Hiei, it's probably not only easier, but better if we try Yukina first. The more key, the better. Until we find out who tried to kill Kurama, we're not going to want to raise a fuss over in Reikei. You know how Koenma gets."  
  
Hiei growled.  
  
"Very well, but if anything goes wrong, I'm holding you personally responsible, detective," Hiei said, hand falling to the hilt of his katana to illustrate.  
  
Yusuke sweatdropped.  
  
"I'm sure everything will work out, really!"  
  
"Hey guys, has anyone noticed that this tea tastes funny?" Kuwabara asked, nose wrinkled up in distaste.  
  
"This is Makai tea, it tastes perfectly normal. It's your stupid ningen tea that tastes bad."  
  
Sensing an argument, Yusuke quickly decided to intervene.  
  
"So, Hiei, what did Leiko mean when she asked you about money?" Yusuke asked.  
  
The spirit detective had never thought it possible before, but for a moment, Hiei actually looked sheepish. Luckily for the youkai, Kuwabara had missed this.  
  
"Nothing," Hiei replied, voice sounding almost normal.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yusuke and Kuwabara reentered Kurama's room, Hiei having been pulled aside by Leiko to 'talk.' What the two members of the Reikei Tantei heard were long strings of the Makai curses they had picked up. Beyond that, they couldn't understand much.  
  
"Hey Kurama," Yusuke began, trying to keep in mind that he was talking to the youko and not the human version, and that the youko had no idea who the hell he was.  
  
The kitsune didn't look at him immediately, having not bothered to feign sleep when he heard the footsteps coming. After a slight pause, he looked sharply at the boy.  
  
Realizing that he wasn't going to get a verbal response, Yusuke continued.  
  
"We, uh. we decided to take you to a healer that we know. you know. Her name's Yukina," Yusuke tried, seeing if the name rang a bell, but when the kitsune continued to stare at him coldly, he plowed on. "We think she might be able to help you get your memories back."  
  
At this, Kurama lifted a silver brow, regarding them thoughtfully, but taking care to make sure his steady gaze did not soften in the least.  
  
"What makes you think I'll go with you," Kurama said at last.  
  
Yusuke's face fell and he looked at Kuwabara, who shrugged helplessly, at a loss for words or help.  
  
"Well, uh, why wouldn't you?"  
  
"I don't know you. I have no way of knowing if you won't lead me to my death."  
  
"You know us!" Kuwabara yelled, fists clenching at his sides, "We went through Maze Castle together and fought in the Dark Tournament, and."  
  
Yusuke cut him off as Kurama's penetrating gaze shifted over to the redhead, eyes narrowing.  
  
"We've been through a lot together, is what Kuwabara is trying to say, and whether you realize it or not, we just want to help you," Yusuke said, hoping that for once, his speech came out the way he had wanted it to. God knows it never did with Keiko, or Botan, or his mother.  
  
Hiei chose that moment to storm into the room, Leiko close behind.  
  
"We're leaving for Genkai's. Now," Hiei announced.  
  
"I'll be escorting you," Leiko added, glaring at Hiei, who growled back.  
  
Yusuke and Kuwabara blinked, both a little fearful to ask what was going on. Instead, the spirit detective turned to the kitsune.  
  
"Well Kurama, four against one."  
  
The youko sighed, expression still narrowed.  
  
"I see that I have no choice."  
  
"That's the spirit!" Yusuke cheered, earning weird looks from the others.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Alika looked at Yukio, her expression an unhappy frown. Her hands were busy pulling loose pieces of hay from the pile she sat on. Her nose twitched in irritation.  
  
"So. Youko Kurama is not dead, is what you're saying," she said slowly, looking critically at her personal assassin.  
  
"It would seem so, according to my spies."  
  
"Well," she began, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger as she tilted her head to the side, "you can go back and finish what you started."  
  
"It's no longer that simple."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
Yukio shifted, obviously uncomfortable with the information he was about to pass on to his mistress.  
  
"It seems that he is in the company of an S-class demon and the rest of the Reikei Tantei."  
  
Alika furrowed her brow, chewing her lip thoughtfully before reaching a decision, her face brightening as she did so.  
  
"I've got it! We'll follow them, wait for the right moment, and bam!" She clapped a fist into an open palm to demonstrate the effects of 'bam!'  
  
Yukio gave her a very unsure look. After a moment of slight hesitation and Alika looking at him expectantly with a pleased expression on her face.  
  
"What, exactly, is 'bam!'?" he asked. She blinked at him, eyes round before she elaborately.  
  
"We, uh. we. wait until he's alone, or at least, not too heavily guarded, then we implant a little 'present' in his head. He'll appear and act normal and then when the timing is right for him, he'll turn on his friends and kill them one by one. Then he won't be guarded, and we can kill him!"  
  
"Why don't we just kill him and spare all the trouble of having him kill his friends. Wouldn't that be easier?"  
  
"Probably!" she said, cheerfully before hopping onto her feet and fairly skipping away, leaving a rather dumbfounded and doubting assassin behind.  
  
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A/N: Well, not nearly so long a wait as last time, and a longer chapter, too! Points for me! 


	6. Chapter 6

This is for Katarica! I was going to trash this, until your review brightened my day.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own it, and am coming to terms with the fact that I probably never will. probably.  
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, possibly AU- it's up to you.  
  
Pairings: none so far  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
The Reikei Tantei plus one walked through the forest, ever alert for any sign of attack. Unfortunately, they weren't alert enough, otherwise they would have noticed they were being followed. That would probably be a problem they would have to deal with at some point.  
  
The group was quickly converging on the portal that would take them back to Ningenkai, blissfully unaware of their predicament, until bam! A flash of green plowed into our fine kitsune friend, bringing him to the ground with a roll. A forest colored cloak covered a body struggling with Kurama, tumbling over each other across the ground. The remaining Reikei Tantei sprung to life, scrabbling after their fallen comrade, but not before the attacker freed itself to leap away, diving into the trees and hitting the ground at a dead run.  
  
Hiei was the first to reach the kitsune, crouching over him with something akin to worry flickering in his eyes. Kurama, on the other hand, had his eyes squeezed shut as he held a hand to his temple, cradling the injury he had obtained during the scuffle. When the rest of the group reached his side, crowding around him anxiously, he carefully opened one golden eye, opposite his throbbing temple. A moment later, the other opened, both narrowing dangerously.  
  
"What happened?" Kuwabara asked.  
  
"He was attacked, idiot," Hiei shot.  
  
Yusuke glared at the two before an argument could break out, before his eyes slid to Leiko, the demoness inspecting the area where the attacker had left. His attention left her to settle on the kitsune.  
  
"Are you all right, Kurama?" he asked, offering his hand to the grounded youko.  
  
"Nothing serious," he spat, ignoring the proferred hand as he got to his feet on his own, reinforcing what he stated. His hand left his temple, a small amount of blood accompanying it. He glared at said hand.  
  
Yusuke sucked in a breath.  
  
"You've got a bit of a gash."  
  
"It's nothing," Kurama growled, irritated more by being caught off guard than anything else, especially since his guard had been up. What he didn't mention was that the demon who assaulted him had a familiar scent.  
  
Yusuke looked helplessly at Hiei, who shrugged in return and began walking again. After a moment's hesitation, the rest followed.  
  
When Leiko caught up, Hiei turned to her.  
  
"Did you find anything?" he demanded.  
  
"Sort of, though I don't know hoe exactly it will help us," she replied, thrusting a fisted hand at the fire youkai, who stared at it distrustingly for a moment, before he put his opened palm beneath it. Leiko uncurled her fingers, letting the object clenched in her hand drop into the waiting one below, walking ahead when the fire youkai stopped to examine it.  
  
Hiei picked up the heavy necklace, inspecting the finely wrought silver chain inlaid with an intricate pattern as his eyes slid down to what it supported. A precious Makai jewel was encased in a glittering frame etched with the same complicated design as the chain. The fire demon held it up to catch the light better, noting how as the jewel swayed it appeared to change color, going from a deep red to a delicate lavender and back again. It was about half the size of his thumb and slightly more round, though still holding true to its oval shape.  
  
Hiei furrowed his brow, suspicion marring his features. It felt much heavier than he thought it should. Then there was the question of why the attacker had been carrying it, assuming that's who it belonged to. In his experience, one did not carry valuables such as this when they went into battle. Not unless there was a reason for it.  
  
"What is it?" Yusuke asked, looking curiously at the jaganshi.  
  
"A necklace," Hiei said, stuffing the piece of jewelry into his cloak, and flitting up into a tree, preferring to travel above the ground where there were fewer questions.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
The group entered the temple with varying degrees of excitement. Yusuke took the initiative and charged in first, immediately setting off to find Yukina, leaving the other four to await his return. A few minutes later, he entered the room, the koorime behind him.  
  
She stared openly at the group for a moment before politely asking Kurama to lay on the couch inhabiting the room. The kitsune hesitated before complying, feeling uneasy as his body rested on the cushions.  
  
Yukina smiled kindly at him before setting to work, eyes slipping closed in concentration. Everyone in the room felt the fluctuations of her energy as she struggled to heal the kitsune, frowning every so often before her face cleared. After what seemed to take forever, she lowered her hands and rocked backwards on her heels, smiling weakly at the group, moving a hand to wipe the beaded sweat from her brow.  
  
Kuwabara rushed immediately to her side, politely taking her arm and leading her to a chair to rest from her exertions. She murmured her thanks to him too quiet for the rest of the group.  
  
Yusuke stepped forward uncertainly, looking at the silver haired kitsune as he sat up on the couch, legs outstretched in front of him.  
  
"Kurama?" he asked, questioningly.  
  
"Yusuke," Kurama said, flashing a friendly smile. "I believe it worked."  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yukina watched as Kurama was crowded, everyone trying to find out what had happened to him. While they got the story out of the kitsune, she frowned to herself.  
  
From what she could gather, Kurama had been taking advantage of his mother's absence and went searching for Makai seeds when he was attacked. He had been sensing that he was being followed for some time, but had been unable to ascertain a location. When they did make their presence known, however, he had killed one of his attackers. Unfortunately, it had been night and he wasn't able to get a good look at the other one's face. All he had to go by was the scent, which had been identical to the demon who had attacked him on their way back to ningenkai. Eventually, his fight had led him into a cave, where the other demon had managed to gain the upper hand and left him for dead.  
  
After a while, when everyone had gotten as much information as they needed, she pulled Hiei to the side.  
  
"Hiei-san?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"I wasn't able to heal Kurama-san completely."  
  
The jaganshi looked at his sister in question, silently urging her to continue.  
  
"The gash he had on his forehead," she began, biting her lip gently, "I was able to close the wound, but I couldn't heal it beyond that. There's damage there that I should have been able to mend, but for some reason, I couldn't."  
  
Hiei looked at the koorime sharply, considering every word.  
  
"I'll ask Genkai about it," Hiei said, leaving her side to search for the psychic.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
"Genkai," Hiei said, entering the yard behind the temple where the psychic was smoking. She looked at him, eyes expressionless as he walked towards her.  
  
"What do you want?" she asked, bringing the cigarette to her mouth.  
  
"What can you tell me about this?" Hiei said, hand reaching into his cloak to pull out an object which he tossed to her. She caught it with her free hand, bringing it up to her face for a closer look.  
  
Her eyes widened slightly as she turned it over, studying its features.  
  
"It's a necklace," she said, flatly.  
  
Hiei fought the urge to roll his eyes and go for his sword.  
  
"Other than the obvious," he growled.  
  
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A/N: Hmmm. If anyone wants me to continue this, say so. Sorry if it's a little boring. I'm trying to write better, because I know I haven't been. 


	7. Chapter 7

Wow, I got a few reviews. Hmm.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own it, and am coming to terms with the fact that I probably never will. probably.  
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, possibly AU- it's up to you.  
  
Pairings: none so far, tell me if you want any!!!!!  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
Kurama rubbed his temple slightly. It felt sore. He supposed he couldn't fault Yukina for that, after all, she had managed to return his memories to him.  
  
He was back at his house, having finally been allowed to leave Genkai's. He had given his thanks to Leiko, who had shrugged, and said she'd be back if she couldn't find his attackers.  
  
Hiei had given him a strange look, and then disappeared to wherever it is that he goes. Yukina had seemed worried in general, and Genkai had taken to staring at him, as if trying to figure something out. The weird behavior had caused him to leave sooner than he otherwise would have.  
  
The redhead stood in front of his bathroom mirror, buttoning up his school uniform and adjusting it so that it hung straight. He wouldn't deny that he cared about his appearance. Kitsunes were often given to decorating themselves to attract mates, male or female. It was in his very nature to at least try to look his best.  
  
It was as he swept his eyes over his reflection one last time, looking for any faults, that his temple began to throb painfully. He gritted his teeth as he raised a hand to it, but the pain intensified, and he found his knees weakening as he sank to the floor.  
  
It felt like his mind was being split in two. He didn't even realize he was biting the inside of his lip, not even when blood began to dribble down his chin in a thin red line. His entire mind focused on the burgeoning pain emanating from his temple.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yusuke grumbled to himself as he picked up the phone, wondering which part of town his mother was currently making an idiot of herself in.  
  
"Moshi Moshi."  
  
"Hello Yusuke, it's Kurama."  
  
The spirit detective was a little surprised. He couldn't remember Kurama ever calling him before, or even giving the kitsune his phone number. If there was ever an emergency, they would all be rounded up by Botan. If Kurama wanted him for anything else, he had a habit of just showing up.  
  
He had noticed that the youko had a certain distaste for phones. This made him wonder why they were talking to each other on one. Yusuke half suspected it had something to do with the mobs of girls that tried to follow the redhead around. At least one would call every time Yusuke was over. Fortunately, Shiori would usually intercept them, much to Kurama's relief.  
  
"What's up?"  
  
"I just wanted to know if it would be all right if I could come over."  
  
"Sure, if you don't mind being surrounded by mess," Yusuke answered, looking around at the disorder of the room and trying to figure out where this was going. "Is there anything wrong?"  
  
"Not at all, I just wanted to hang out with you, Yusuke."  
  
"Well it's fine by me. What time are you planning on coming over?"  
  
"I was hoping right away, if that's okay."  
  
"Yeah sure. See you in a few," Yusuke said, hanging up the phone after Kurama said his 'goodbye.' He couldn't shake the feeling that Kurama had sounded. distracted. If he had to guess, he'd say that everything wasn't quite all right with the kitsune.  
  
He shrugged.  
  
If there was something wrong with Kurama, he'd probably find out what it was when the redhead showed up.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Hiei watched Kurama leave his house. There was something different in the kitsune's stride. The jaganshi couldn't quite place it, but the redhead emanated of wrongness.  
  
However, he wasn't going to waste time concerning himself with that when the kitsune was on the move. He silently leapt from one tree to the next, following Kurama through the twists and turns of the human city. It wasn't long before he was lost; relying only on the redhead he was tracking to lead him. There was some thought tugging at his mind the entire time which refused to be pushed to the forefront. It seemed vaguely important.  
  
It was as he flitted from one shadow to another around a corner and into an alley, the trees far behind, that he realized what it was.  
  
Kurama was nowhere to be seen.  
  
Hiei swore. He had been deliberately led around until he was lost, then the kitsune disappeared. The redhead had known he was being trailed all along.  
  
The fire jaganshi ran to the other end of the alley, eyes scanning the crowd of people for any sight of red hair, seeing none. He couldn't even sense him! Quickly, Hiei flitted to the top the building he was next to, looking five stories down onto the streets below. No matter which direction he looked, he saw no trace of the redhead. He leapt down breaking into a run, a growing discomfort forming in his stomach, ignoring the few stares he received from when he landed.  
  
He rounded one corner, then the next, hopelessly losing himself further within the twists and turns of the city.  
  
/Damn! These human streets all look alike!/ He looked both ways down the sidewalk he had come to, searching across the street as well.  
  
Hiei stopped his run and looked around, his eyes landing on a tree. He dashed over to it and leapt up into its enfolding branches. Once he was carefully concealed, he removed the ward from his jagan.  
  
Concentrating, he searched out the familiar energy of the kitsune, scowling when he felt an alien darkness clinging to it, warring and wrestling with the usually calm spirit of the youko. It was faint, telling him that Kurama was far away, but it was there. Whatever forces drove the kitsune at the moment were dark.  
  
It then hit him as to where the youko was headed.  
  
"Yusuke," Hiei growled, taking off in the direction his jagan pointed him to.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yusuke ran to the front door when he heard the soft knock. If he hadn't known Kurama was coming, he wouldn't have been listening for it, and probably would have missed it. It wouldn't be the first time.  
  
He remembered Kurama apologizing for breaking in, and then apologizing for nearly giving him a heart attack. It had been some sort of emergency mission and Botan had sent Kurama to get him while she searched for Hiei and Kuwabara.  
  
There was more than once where Kurama had proved that it was beneficial to be a thief. Of course, there were also times when Yusuke had learned that it was not beneficial to have a kitsune friend who had been a thief. Like the time when Kurama had broken in and nearly given him a heart attack.  
  
Yusuke grinned as he threw open the door, inviting the redhead inside the apartment. The kitsune greeted him with a strange smile, stepping in and shutting the door behind him, turning on the spirit detective.  
  
"Hello Yusuke," he purred dangerously, looking for all the world like he was ready to strike.  
  
To say that Kurama's demeanor was putting him on edge was an understatement. The brunette backed up uncertainly, trying to get some distance between him and the decidedly abnormal kitsune, when his back hit the wall.  
  
"What's up, Kurama?"  
  
"Nothing much."  
  
The kitsune's eyes took on what could only be a malicious glint as he took a step forward.  
  
"Is there something on your mind?" Yusuke asked nervously, trying to figure out what could possibly be causing the redhead to act like this.  
  
Kurama didn't answer save to shoot out a fist, aimed directly at the spirit detective's head.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Kuwabara shivered as his unusually high spirit awareness picked up a disturbance. He had been feeding a kitten that he had found in an alley and brought home when the feeling hit.  
  
There was something familiar about it, and he concentrated, trying to figure out what exactly it was that had bothered him.  
  
He gasped when it clicked.  
  
"Kurama!"  
  
Hurriedly, he ran from his house, heading in the direction he sensed the kitsune, only vaguely registering how familiar this path seemed.  
  
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A/N: This was kind of rushed. 


	8. Chapter 8

I got a vote for a Hiei/Kurama pairing. What do you say?  
  
Disclaimer: I really don't own anything of value.  
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, possibly AU- it's up to you.  
  
Pairings: none so far, tell me if you want any!!!!!  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
Yusuke ducked the fist as it shot overhead, burying itself in the plaster wall. Cautiously, he looked up, catching a glimpse of the cold, vacant eyes of the kitsune, arm outstretched, hand disappearing through the newly formed hole. He watched in a type of fascinated horror as Kurama looked down at him, smiling amiably, though his green eyes twisted it into something sinister.  
  
"Kurama? Are you all right?"  
  
The spirit detective barely managed to roll away from the response of the redhead's knee, which also succeeded in damaging the defenseless wall. Yusuke stood and began backing up, eyes flicking from the kitsune to the now cracked plaster of the innocent wall and back to the green ice.  
  
"Care if I ask what's going on?!" Yusuke asked, taking a defensive stance.  
  
"I'm going to kill you, Yusuke."  
  
"Well, as long as you let me in on it."  
  
Yusuke watched with a growing amount of distress as Kurama reached a hand into his red tresses to bring out a small, almond-shaped seed. Quickly, he looked around the apart, a frown creasing his features.  
  
"Wait! If you're going to kill me, can you at least do it outside? If my mom has to clean my blood out of the furniture, she's going to flip out!"  
  
The plea caused the kitsune to stop, an eyebrow elegantly raised above those twisted eyes. Slowly, his mouth turned upwards, politely quirked in amusement.  
  
"I have been known to do requests."  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Hiei sprinted onto the battlegrounds, cloak still hanging on to the breeze it had been flung on, katana drawn. Before him, he saw the transformed youko Kurama, silver strands riding on the slight wind. The golden eyed demon was laughing as he toyed with the spirit detective, rose whip snapping harshly in the air as Yusuke scrambled to dodge.  
  
Hiei narrowed his ruby eyes, growl rising up in his throat as he took the scene in. Whether he was angry that Kurama obviously wasn't back to 'normal,' Yusuke was being attacked, or both, he couldn't tell.  
  
He didn't, however, have time to dwell on that. Yusuke was losing, barely able to escape each lash. It wouldn't belong before the legendary youko thief grew tired of his game. Gritting his teeth, the jaganshi searched for an opening, sharp eyes searching out any possible break in the fluidity of the kitsune's movements.  
  
In a blink, he was gone.  
  
The youko suddenly halted his attack, giving the spirit detective a much needed breath. Hiei stood behind Kurama, silver hair gripped tightly in one hand, the other holding his katana against a vulnerable throat. The jaganshi could barely control his voice from being saturated with all the fury boiling beneath his surface, as ruby met gold.  
  
"Drop the whip," Hiei growled.  
  
The kitsune, surprisingly, complied, his deadliest weapon falling to the ground as elegant fingers loosened their hold. Kurama, however, was grinning madly.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Kuwabara panted, his eyes glued to the sight of Hiei holding his sword to what could only be Kurama's neck. He quickened his already brutal pace plowing forward, hurrying to figure out what was going on when his foot caught on something and he tumbled forward, arms splayed out before him as he crashed to the ground.  
  
He sucked in a breath as he looked over his shoulder to see what had tripped him up. He looked up at the wide eyes of the leader of the Reikei Tantei, who was seemingly in a stupor.  
  
Yusuke shifted his eyes to the bulk of blue on the ground in front of him, one foot still hooked on his own leg, then back at the pair ahead.  
  
"What's going on Urameshi?"  
  
"Kurama's lost it. Hiei came and helped me out," Yusuke said distantly, nodding to the river of blood streaming down from a gash on his upper arm, opposite hand clenched protectively around the wound.  
  
Kuwabara watched as the spirit detective's face became uncommonly serious as he pushed himself up from his seat on the ground, walking towards the demons. A moment later, the redhead followed suit. Cautiously, they stopped a few feet away, staring down at the maniacal kitsune, worry etched onto their features.  
  
"Are you really going to kill me, Hiei?" the youko asked, a dangerous calm settled on his voice and features with just a hint of mocking.  
  
"If I have to."  
  
Kurama let out a sharp laugh as he jerked suddenly, satisfaction filling his eyes as the blade moved with him rather than against. The human duo immediately crouched defensively, needlessly.  
  
Hiei turned the hilt of the katana so quickly the movement couldn't be followed. In less than a split second, the jaganshi had bludgeoned the kitsune on the head with the butt of the sword, face carefully neutral as the silver haired demon dropped to the ground, unconscious.  
  
"Is he all right?" Kuwabara asked.  
  
Before Hiei could offer up the start of another insult match, Yusuke intervened.  
  
"Kuwabara, why don't you start carrying him back to Genkai's. We'll catch up in a minute, I just need to ask Hiei something," the spirit detective said with measured restraint.  
  
Uncertainly, the redhead looked down at the inert kitsune, hesitating a moment before scooping him up and throwing him over his shoulders. Determinedly, he spun around and headed off, keeping a steady grip on his cargo, even if he was inwardly cringing at the thought of the youko suddenly springing back into action.  
  
When the redhead was safely out of range, Yusuke turned to the jaganshi, a grin plastered stupidly on his face.  
  
"What would you have done if he had called your bluff?"  
  
"Care to find out what I do to morons who ask idiot questions?" Hiei threatened, flicking his katana to illustrate his point.  
  
"Fine, fine!" Yusuke waved his arms in front of him innocently, before growing serious. "Do you have any idea why this happened?"  
  
The slight hesitation was enough for Yusuke to press forward.  
  
"Would it have anything to do with that welt on his head? Or that necklace Leiko found when he was attacked?"  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Kuwabara ran as soon as he was out of sight. As much as he didn't want to be alone with an insane kitsune, he also wanted to get said kitsune to help as soon as possible. Preferably before the silver haired demon woke up again.  
  
He still didn't know what was going on. Yusuke hadn't told him why Kurama had attacked him.  
  
Then Hiei looked like he was about to kill someone, though the feeling really didn't seem to be directed at Kurama. Despite whatever the jaganshi may say, Kuwabara knew that somewhere in that frozen black little heart, Hiei really didn't want to hurt any of them. /Even me. / The thought flickered through the redhead's mind as he begrudgingly admitted, to himself anyway, that he really didn't want the jaganshi hurt, either.  
  
Despite all the sentimentalities floating around, Kurama had still felt the need to kill Yusuke. He knew that they had all experienced a strong urge to bring an untimely death to the spirit detective at one time or another, but until now, none of them had actually acted on it. At least not seriously, anyway. At any rate, none of them had ever succeeded.  
  
By the time Kuwabara would come around again, he usually forgot his anger at Yusuke. He was hoping that when Kurama came to, he would be back to normal. Although, the thief had looked normal enough, a familiar calm exterior in place when he had shown. Yet, there was something about the calm that was positively eerie.  
  
Up ahead, the temple loomed into view. With a final sprint, the redhead ushered forward.  
  
Kuwabara charged into Genkai's temple, disturbing the psychic from her tea with Yukina as he carefully put Kurama's prone figure on the floor before hastily backing away. He looked up, startlement splaying across his face.  
  
"I couldn't find anything," Leiko said, by way of explanation for her presence, annoyance coloring her tone before looking at the grounded kitsune. "What's wrong with him?"  
  
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A/N: I'm not really sure what to say about this chapter. It was short.  
  
Remember, I feed off of reviews. They are my sustenance, and without them, I will wither and die. Well, not really. 


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I own a headache, an unfinished report, and a used sick day. Little more than that.  
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.  
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, possibly AU- it's up to you, a loosely strung together 'plot'  
  
Pairings: Hiei/Kurama? Any others?  
  
"speaking" /thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
"Hiei?" Yusuke pressed.  
  
"There's nothing special about the necklace, except its engraving."  
  
"Engraving?"  
  
"It's engraved with initials."  
  
"Oh. Well, whose are they?"  
  
"If I knew that, someone who's still alive would be dead right now."  
  
"What if it's more than one person?" Yusuke asked innocently, unwittingly bringing a new, obvious possibility to the mind of the jaganshi. Hiei had to keep his face from showing that he hadn't even considered it. Usually he was more suspicious.  
  
"Then it'd be more dead people."  
  
Yusuke grinned. Having Hiei on your side could be very safe.  
  
"So what are the initials?"  
  
"A. I."  
  
"What about the gash on his head? Think it's a head wound causing all of this?" Yusuke asked, unconsciously scratching at his own skull. Hiei momentarily debated telling the detective what he knew before deciding that Yusuke would probably find out on his own, anyway.  
  
"Yukina had told me that she couldn't heal it."  
  
Yusuke started, looking hard at Hiei.  
  
"Wait, you mean he had that when we got back from Makai, or Yukina healed him since then?"  
  
It was Hiei's turn to be startled.  
  
"You mean you hadn't noticed it?"  
  
"Well," Yusuke began, shifting his weight, "no."  
  
A look at the fire jaganshi caused Yusuke to add, "Not until he tried to kill me anyway."  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yukina rushed over from her seat on the couch, kneeling down next to Kurama worriedly.  
  
"What happened to Kurama?" she asked, voice shaking as she brushed away silver hair from his face.  
  
"Yusuke said he just went crazy and tried to kill him. When I got there, Hiei had his sword to his throat. Then he knocked him out."  
  
Instantly, Yukina's eyes snapped up, peering around.  
  
"Where are Hiei and Yusuke? Are they all right?"  
  
"Yeah, they're fine," Kuwabara said, glancing down at the youko, "they had me bring Kurama here while they talked about something."  
  
"Thoughtful," Leiko said, looking down at the prone kitsune emotionlessly. This wasn't exactly what she had expected to find on her second visit to the Ningenkai. A slight frown tugged at her lips as she remembered she still hadn't gotten her money from Hiei. She'd have to make a note to harass him about it when he showed up.  
  
"Should I. should I heal him?" Yukina asked quietly, looking directly into Kuwabara's eyes.  
  
"No," Genkai said, speaking for the first time as she elbowed her way to Kurama. Kneeling, she grabbed his chin and looked intently at his face, occasionally tilting it to one side or the other. Satisfied with her inspection, she spoke. "We should restrain him in case he wakes up. Then, we wait for Hiei and the Idiot."  
  
"How are we going to do that?" Kuwabara asked, curiosity spreading across his face.  
  
"Easily," Genkai replied sternly.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
"So," Alika began, innocently poking at the ember of a fire with her stick, "did Kurama go psycho and kill his friends yet?"  
  
"How should I know?" Yukio grumbled. He was still sore from his latest mission involving the kitsune. The former thief surrounded himself with powerful allies, it seemed.  
  
"Well, you were the one who was supposed to take care of that."  
  
He was silent, watching as she grew bored with the ashes and stood up, almost skipping away. He had never been able to understand how such an airhead had become so powerful. It wasn't as if she ever trained, and he could only remember seeing her fight once. She spent her days sleeping, eating, and grinning stupidly.  
  
Yet, he was the one working for her.  
  
He wasn't even sure why he was working for her. He didn't like her. She was an idiot. He could easily get paid more somewhere else. It's not as if she would hunt him down if he left. He didn't stay out of fear. The missions she sent him on were usually pointless.  
  
The only thing that stuck out was why this had never occurred to him before.  
  
He didn't see himself getting up and leaving, though.  
  
There had to be some reason.  
  
Suddenly, he remembered. The food. He had never eaten finer cuisine in all of Makai. Alika may be one of the stupidest demons he ever came across, but she had one hell of a cook.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yusuke and Hiei walked into the temple, looking around for anyone to update them on Kurama's condition, in the hopes it had changed for the better. What they saw was a demoness dressed in white lounging on a couch.  
  
"What the hell are you doing here?" Hiei demanded.  
  
"I couldn't find a thing. Fox-boy didn't give me enough information."  
  
"Where is Kurama?" Yusuke asked.  
  
Leiko thumbed behind her. Yusuke's gaze followed the direction she pointed in before heading that way. Before he left the room, he turned and winked at Hiei, smirking as he turned back around and walked through the door.  
  
Hiei almost snarled. The spirit detective abandoned him with the kitty-cat lunatic. This supposive friendship thing was overrated, or a sham. Narrowing his ruby orbs, he stared down the white-haired demoness.  
  
"Where's."  
  
"I don't have you fucking money!"  
  
She sighed.  
  
"I was going to ask where my 'hello' was," she said, condescendingly.  
  
"Like hell."  
  
"So I lied, big deal," she shrugged. She turned her back on him, a gesture that clearly said she did not consider him a threat. In Makai this could both be an insult and a warning.  
  
Hiei snarled, hand immediately going to the hilt of his katana.  
  
"Oh Hiei-kun! You're here!"  
  
Ruby-red eyes snapped up to see Yukina rushing towards him from the doorway Yusuke had left from. Instantly, Hiei forgot about his intentions of kitty- hacking.  
  
He silently waited while she ran up to him, worry and seriousness twisting in her eyes.  
  
"Genkai wants to see you."  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Yusuke looked down at his friend.  
  
Kurama was unconscious still. Silver hair dangled down from his limp head. The kitsune had been strapped down to a chair of sorts. It looked like a twisted lump of wood and stone.  
  
He didn't like it. He didn't like any of this. Kurama was not the one who should be restrained. Of the Reikei Tantei, the kitsune was the one who needed to be tied down the least.  
  
He wasn't even sure what they had tied the youko down with. It didn't look like any rope he had ever seen.  
  
He didn't even bother to think about that very long. He didn't want to know.  
  
"This is all so stupid!" he yelled, fisting his hands in his pockets.  
  
Life sucked.  
  
Absently, he clutched at his injured arm. It had now stopped bleeding, and didn't even really hurt anymore. It had grown to half-remembered numbness as a result of other things crowding his head. It wasn't even a serious injury, just a bit deep and a lot of blood.  
  
Glancing down, he noticed for the first time, really, exactly how bloody his arm was. His jacket sleeve was torn in dark crimson shreds down to his wrist. His hand was sticky and drying.  
  
For the life of him, he couldn't figure out why he had thought he needed to grab his jacket before going outside to die.  
  
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A/N: Whoo, lo-o-o-o-ng wait. Sorry. That was mean of me. 


	10. Chapter 10

Notes: Well, there's some new plot developments and I can type faster than I can think. That is directly related to how tired I am.  
  
Disclaimer: I have to get up and go to work tomorrow at seven. It's 1:14 right now. On the plus side, I finally got my raise! Even if it WAS five months late. To get to the point, I'm a blue collar worker. I doubt I'd own the rights to any tv show. Then again, I don't know everything.  
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.   
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, yaoi, possibly AU- it's up to you, a loosely strung together 'plot,' a little goofy in some parts- redundancy or confusion  
  
Pairings: Hiei/Kurama? Any others?  
  
"speaking"  
  
/thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
Genkai tapped her cigarette, watching the loose ashes flutter to the ground. She knew Hiei was standing impatiently behind her. The light breeze announcing his sudden presence was enough for anyone observant enough, psychic or no.  
  
Hiei knew she knew. She knew he knew she knew. So on and so forth. There was a silent contest daring each other to speak first, to acknowledge the other's presence. This carried on as long as was seemly, both realizing the stupidity on dragging it out too long.  
  
"Hiei," Genkai conceded, growing impatient in light of the heavy subject matter.  
  
"Hn."  
  
The psychic took another drag from her lighted stick, inhaling the smoke, so accustomed to the feeling of it sticking to her insides that she no more noticed it than she did anything else comparatively insignificant.  
  
It was cold out. Neither seemed particularly concerned about the weather.  
  
"Have you seen Kurama yet?" she asked, almost disinterestedly.  
  
"Since I got here?"  
  
She nodded.  
  
"No."  
  
"He's tied down," she said, nonchalantly. The psychic could almost hear the jaganshi bristle.  
  
"Did you have a point or are you just wasting my time?" Hiei spat, growing increasingly impatient. Conversing with the psychic was trying. Yet, the masochistic streak in him took an odd sort of joy. She was a relief from the idiocy he usually seemed to surround him with, albeit a damn annoying one.  
  
"That knot on his head is causing this, but I suppose you already figured that out. It was pretty obvious."  
  
"Hn."  
  
"Specifically, the cause is inside the knot."  
  
"Just say it," Hiei growled. Suspense was never a good thing. In his experience, it made things go from bad to worse.  
  
"The necklace you found, do you still have it?" Genkai asked, finally turning around to regard the youkai.  
  
Hiei's face was carefully neutral as he reached inside his cloak to grab the necklace, tossing it to the aged fighter. Genkai caught it deftly, immediately bringing it up to her face to inspect it.  
  
Hiei waited. There was a piece of the puzzle he was missing.   
  
"Did you notice the chain is missing a link?" Genkai asked.  
  
The jaganshi narrowed his eyes, refusing a verbal answer. He hadn't noticed.  
  
"The missing link is inside Kurama's gash. It's what's causing his lapse in judgement."  
  
Hiei would hardly consider it a lapse in judgment. One thing was still escaping him, though. If they knew what was the source of all this, why the need to restrain the youko? Hadn't they removed the link?  
  
Genkai looked at him solemnly.  
  
"If we remove it, we'll kill him."  
  
Hiei could've swore. He should have known it was something like this. It always was.  
  
"Then what are we supposed to do?" he asked, testily.  
  
"Find the owner of the necklace and ask them," Genkai shrugged. She glanced down at the chained jewel, fingering it absently. Her advice was similar to finding a needle in a haystack, she knew that. She also knew there was little else she could offer.   
  
Drawing in another breath of smoke, she tossed the piece of jewelry back.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Hiei didn't bother to acknowledge Yusuke, standing in the corner looking sick, as he entered the small room. Sunlight cast thin rectangles on the floor. Dimly, Hiei couldn't help but be nagged by the seemingly gray world he had stepped into. Its oppressiveness was something he steadfastly ignored.  
  
The room itself was constructed from the same wood as the rest of the temple, but it looked gray. Never before had a color reeked so much.  
  
The background was retracted in light of the room's centralized object. A limp, silver-haired kitsune. Almost hesitantly, he strode forward, stopping just in front of the youko.   
  
He stared down at the creature, bound by warded ropes from Makai, stuck in a chair of wood and stone, unbreakable in the sorcery that had created it. He couldn't say where Genkai had gotten hold of such a thing, or why the psychic even had it. It was effective though, his jagan was practically burning through his headband in its efforts to tell him.  
  
He heard scuffling behind him.  
  
"I'm going to get some air," Yusuke announced gruffly, both knowing how miserably he failed at trying to sound unaffected.  
  
Hiei waited until the retreating footsteps had faded from his hearing.  
  
"Idiot boy. Cares too much."  
  
He didn't dare admit he was afflicted by the same problem. The image before his eyes was enough of a reminder.   
  
Carefully, as if he was afraid the kitsune would shatter at the contact, he placed a finger under the lowered chin, lifting it, his other fingers quickly cradling the silver-haired head.  
  
The youko looked so undeniably peaceful, nothing compared to the maniacal abomination he had knocked out.   
  
How he wanted his kitsune back. The one he knew, the calm, unflinching tactical genius he had come to rely on, as dangerous a thing as that was. Reliance would get you killed.   
  
Or save you.  
  
He studied the blank face before him. Yes, this reliance he had developed had saved him, saved him from himself.   
  
It wasn't just Kurama, though. Yusuke, the leader, of sorts, had also managed to rob a certain dependence away from him. Begrudgingly he admitted, at least to himself, that even the idiot doting on his sister had wrested away a small pillar of his own self-empowered stability.   
  
Obviously he would never admit this anyone, living or dead.  
  
Kurama though, Kurama was something special.  
  
The first person to ever trust him, even if that trust was unsteady and guarded originally, was Kurama. Yusuke had been the second. The detective had put all his trust in the fire youkai so suddenly, so blindly faithful. He hadn't understand how someone could believe in him so openly, so unabashedly completely trust him. He was at an even bigger loss to explain how two people could do it. He wouldn't even bother with how that number had grown.   
  
Kurama was the first to ever show him any sort of kindness, gentleness, even compassion. Then of course, Yusuke had followed suit, though conveniently forgetting the gentle part. Hiei couldn't picture the brash tantei being gentle. Then, once again, the total grew, albeit it was always a few steps behind.  
  
Kurama always paved the way, always opened new doors leading to previously unexplored avenues.   
  
Yusuke busted down those doors. Then the remaining group would trundle through the wooden splinters.  
  
Kurama was his closest, most prized friend. Yusuke was some idiot human who he had sworn to kill, yet knew he never would. Yusuke was different from Kurama. The detective was such a highly valued friend that he would do anything for, but Yusuke didn't compare.  
  
No one compared to Kurama.  
  
Hiei leaned in, gently pressing against soft, pliant lips, reverently beholding the kitsune. Silently, he withdrew, reaching up to press against a smooth forehead, leaving a moist promise on the pale skin.  
  
He drew back again, peering into carefully unexpressive golden eyes.  
  
The jaganshi was not surprised. He had sensed that the kitsune woke up.  
  
For a moment, the two stared at each other.  
  
"I see you're awake."  
  
"Yes."  
  
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A/N: That took much longer than I'd have thought. Oh well. 


	11. Chapter 11

Notes: Computer viruses and people viruses suck. Don't get them. If I'm not sick, the computer is! Grrr…. Oh, and if you go to school, quit- it's bad. The dumbest thing I ever did? Take College Algebra and College Writing. THAT'S stupidity for you. However, Christmas is over, and my relatives have left, so I have some time for now.  
  
Oh, and I'm trying to wrap this up quick for those very reasons, so I think the next chapter should be the last.   
  
Disclaimer: YYH was created by the talented Mr. Togashi… who I think is married to the lady who created Sailor Moon.   
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.   
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, slight yaoi, possibly AU- it's up to you, a loosely strung together 'plot,' a little goofy in some parts- redundancy or confusion  
  
Pairings: Hiei/Kurama  
  
"speaking"  
  
/thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
Yusuke gulped in the frigid air, vaguely wondering why it was so cold. It was a welcome shock to his system, though, stumbling his thoughts elsewhere. The chill hit his lungs with a bite, the crispness of the air bringing him back to himself.  
  
He hated this.  
  
He hated all of this.  
  
Whoever was responsible would die a slow and painful death, he would personally see to that.   
  
Once more aware of his surroundings, he noticed the psychic stamping out a cigarette as she watched him with a hint of amusement.   
  
"I want to just hit someone!" he yelled, not necessarily to his company.  
  
"So? You always want to hit someone."  
  
"Yeah, but this time, I really want them to suffer. Isn't there anything you can do?"  
  
"Not unless they come knocking on my door, which I don't expect to happen anytime soon."  
  
Yusuke looked at the psychic helplessly. He would be the first to admit he wasn't one for strategies. He always made things up as he went along and hoped it all worked out. That was how he had defeated Hiei, after all.   
  
However, his mentor could offer him no help.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Alika chewed her thumbnail thoughtfully. She was looking at Yukio in a rather considering manner, which was making the hired hand nervous. Abruptly, she stood up from her perch on the ground, grinning triumphantly. A mighty mental battle had been weighing her down.  
  
"I'm bored!" she announced.  
  
"What's your point?" Yukio asked, doing his best to brush her off.  
  
"We're going after Kurama ourselves! Right now!" She started on her way when the assassin grabbed the hem of her shirt, keeping her in place.   
  
Alika turned around to look at him quizzically.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I said 'I'm bored.' Do I have to spell it out for you?" she demanded, as if talking to an idiot. Yukio was more than surprised that she could possibly use a condescending tone on anyone.   
  
"I guess I fail to see the connection."  
  
Alika let out a breath of frustration, grabbing her shirt from his hand and heading off again. Dutifully, Yukio followed her.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Hiei stared into the face of the silver-haired captive, nearly breathless. In front of him was the demon all of Makai had once lusted over. Hiei had to keep himself from smirking as he realized he had one of the most beautiful and sought after creatures to have ever existed right in front of him… tied up in front of him. At his mercy, really.  
  
He always preferred those around him at his nonexistent mercy. It made dealing with them so much easier.  
  
However, he had to forcefully shove his mind away from such thoughts to deal with the matter at hand: inspecting the kitsune.  
  
Another flood of inappropriate thoughts rampaged through his mind, and again he made himself focus.   
  
Cautiously, he let his right hand trail up to Kurama's afflicted temple, fingers lightly tracing around the area before he leaned in for a closer look.   
  
"Can't keep your hands off me?"  
  
Hiei froze, heart beating wildly in his chest. He could feel the youko press to him, despite the kitsune's limited movement. The warmth of the other body lapped against his, and he jerked away more suddenly than he had wanted to.  
  
He looked at the captive coldly, regarding the annoyingly pretty smirking face.  
  
"What's your game, Kurama?"  
  
"You mean you don't want me?" the youko feigned his innocence.  
  
"If you think I'm going to let you go, then you are sadly mistaken."  
  
Somehow, the creature before the jaganshi managed to look indignant at this accusation. Hiei knew better than to believe such an act. He may be young as far as Makai was concerned, but he had also seen more than most demons had. As he considered, it evened out.   
  
"Hiei, don't fool yourself."  
  
"Into what?" the jaganshi asked, eyes narrowed.  
  
"Into pretending you don't want me."  
  
"I'm not pretending anything. It's the idiot with the red hair and green eyes that I want. Not an insane kitsune."  
  
"You were the one who always called me a 'crazy fox.' Or are you speaking of someone else entirely?" Kurama nearly growled, surprising the koorime. However, that was soon replaced by the surprise of the kitsune nuzzling his shoulder before a he became aware that Kurama had decided to run his tongue along his neck. He shivered, hands fisting on the kitsune's clothing. If he was a weaker being, he would have allowed it to continue, but his better judgment deemed that he should push away the amorous creature.  
  
Hiei released the cloth between his fingers as he turned and left the room, eyes holding onto a wary gleam.  
  
More than once he nearly ran back.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Alika looked up, hand shielding her eyes from the sun resting calmly behind the temple. Yukio was behind her, wishing he was somewhere else. He had imagined a better life for himself. He could have been one of Makai's premier assassins with his own god-sent cook. Of course, he realized, it was still possible. He could kill Alika, one way or another, and then convince her cook to work for him.  
  
It was a happy thought, but he sadly recognized how unlikely that was.  
  
"That's a lot of steps," Alika said, letting out a low whistle. With a cheerful cry she hopped on the first one, then the second. Yukio watched her go up. She was on her eight step when she hopped and missed, falling backwards. She tumbled down and landed on her face.  
  
"Welcome back. How was your trip?"  
  
"Mmrgrmmph."  
  
Ignoring her, Yukio started the climb, opting for a more traditional way of scaling stairs. It wasn't long before the quick pads of feet racing up behind him brought about the appearance of Alika.  
  
They made it to the top in silence….  
  
….to be met by three members of the Reikei Tantei, and one psychic.  
  
"Who are you?" a dark haired human boy in jeans demanded, upset for one reason or another.  
  
"I'm Inishimori Alika, who are you?"  
  
"Urameshi Yusuke."  
  
"So, are you one of Kurama's friends?" she asked.  
  
"What do you know about Kurama?" a short demon growled.  
  
"I'll take that as a 'yes.' Then, why aren't you dead, yet?"  
  
"Are you the one who shoved that link in his head?" Yusuke asked.  
  
Alika blinked.  
  
"No, that was Yukio," she said, aiming her thumb behind her at the assassin, who looked for all the world like he hated his job.  
  
Without another word, the short demon lunged, sword aimed at Yukio's heart. The assassin dodged, but soon found himself in a dangerous game of hopscotch.  
  
"What's going on….?" Leiko trailed off, eyes landing on the newly arrived demons from her spot in a doorway. She sniffed the air, eyes narrowing.  
  
"Who are you?" Alika asked.  
  
"I recognize his scent," she said, finger pointed at Yukio as sidestepped Hiei to bring down his elbow in the small back, but finding his target gone. "He's one of the bastards who invaded my territory!"  
  
"Yeah, he was sent by her," Yusuke said, gesturing to Alika, who shrugged.  
  
"You! You are going down!" Leiko yelled, diving a Alika and tackling her, both of them going over the edge of the top step.  
  
The three noncombatants ran to peer down, seeing the two demonesses still rolling.  
  
"Well, she went down all right!" Yusuke laughed.  
  
A flash of black in front of their view brought their attention back to Hiei's skirmish, which had suddenly turned to a standstill as the two opponents stared at each other, each trying desperately to catch their breath as they struggled to seem as though they weren't.  
  
"How do you remove the link?" Hiei demanded, voicing sounding surprisingly even.  
  
"You need the necklace it came from."  
  
Hiei produced the chain in an instant, nearly letting it dangle from his fingers.  
  
"Hold the jewel to the injury and the link will dissolve," Yukio said.  
  
Before anyone could blink, Hiei was gone.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Leiko and Alika came to a jarring halt as they smacked against a statue. Alika stumbled to her feet, hand pressed against her spinning head as she woozily tried to balance. This was not possible as a crazed cat demon decided to ignore any dizziness that may have plagued her as she laced her claws through the other demon's back.   
  
Alika fell to her knees, disoriented as a pair of white-clad legs gently tapped the ground a ways in front of her before deciding to charge at her at an alarming speed. Gashes across her shoulder told her that she should have tried to dodge that one.  
  
As quickly as she was able, Alika spun around, jumping to her feet as she took a defensive stance. If she remembered correctly, cat demons were a bunch of little psychos.   
  
Mostly crazy.  
  
They were also obsessively clean.  
  
When they weren't killing, that is.  
  
If she wasn't mistaken, they also liked having their tummies rubbed…… no, that was real cats.   
  
"What are you staring at?"  
  
Alika was snapped out of her kitty reveries to find Leiko looking at her strangely.  
  
"What?"  
  
"You were just staring off into space! I'm trying to kill you, you know."  
  
"Oh," Alika rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, "yeah, I guess I kind of forgot."  
  
"Well, it's really distracting when the person you're trying to kill is looking at some trees right in the middle of a fight."  
  
"Sorry."  
  
"You'd better be," Leiko said, putting her hands on her hips.  
  
"So……"  
  
"So…?"  
  
"Come here often?" Alika asked.  
  
"Actually it's only my second time here, wait… shouldn't we be fighting?"  
  
Almost before she could finish, a happy little fist slammed into her pretty little face. Her once pretty little face.  
  
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A/N: Yay! I'm back, at least for this story! Sorry it got a little strange towards the end, here. As my brother would say, "It's not so much funny as it is weird."  
  
*Oh, and to all you Rurouni Kenshin fans who have an interest in the history of it, go see "The Last Samurai." For the most part, it's pretty accurate. Our favorite redheaded samurai doesn't exactly make an appearance, but it's a fairly good depiction of Japan at the time, with lots of cultural references. Albeit, it's mine and my father's personal opinion that Mr. Tom Cruise can't act, it's still good. Sorry to all you Tom Cruise fans.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Sorry, got carried away with the ending notes. 


	12. Chapter 12

Notes: Well, since my notes here are really just an update on my life, I've decided to continue the tradition. I am overjoyed. I finally did an assignment right for College Writing! *cheers* When I get done with my happy dance, I'll type the rest of this.   
  
Disclaimer: I have a couple of the manga from YYH. Togashi really has a style all his own. He really has great backgrounds and frame break-ups (these are what I notice because I have the most trouble drawing these), and I guess he has pretty good character designs, too. The point is, he has more skill and talent than me when it comes to drawing (for now…..*wink*) and he created the series, not me.   
  
Author: Letta  
  
Rating: Probably R.   
  
Warnings: Violence, slight OOC, shonen ai, possibly AU- it's up to you, a loosely strung together 'plot,' a little goofy in some parts- redundancy or confusion  
  
Pairings: Hiei/Kurama  
  
"speaking"  
  
/thoughts/  
  
Title: Just Outside the Light  
  
"So why did you just tell him how to fix it?" Yusuke asked Yukio.  
  
"Because I don't care." As if that were explanation enough, he turned away from the spirit detective, and glanced down at the fight that seemed so far below them. If he was lucky, this would be the last day that Alika saw alive. As he looked back at the three humans before him, he saw that they had taken a cue from him and also looked down.   
  
He really had no lingering business with them, so there was no point in fighting them, as far as he could see. However, he doubted they would just let him leave. For whatever reasons, people tended to get angry after you've attacked their friends. He figured he'd try it anyway.  
  
"I'm leaving now," Yukio announced, expecting any sort of attack.  
  
"Hey wait, I'm not…" Yusuke began, but soon dodged a screaming ball of energy aimed at him. When he rolled to his feet to look at the demon that had stood before him, he saw nothing.  
  
"A distraction," Genkai said disinterestedly.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"We would've noticed if he had just left. So, he must have decided the easiest way to get out of here was to attack and leave before it was over."  
  
"He didn't have to start throwing around his energy at me."  
  
"You dodged, didn't you? Besides, what kind of distraction would it be if you could easily block it?"  
  
"So you mean, he never meant to hurt us?" Kuwabara asked.  
  
"I doubt he cared, but he probably assumed Yusuke would dodge."  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Hiei looked down at the bound creature before him. Anxiously, he fingered the links in his clenching hand. The kitsune before him merely acknowledged his presence by meeting his gaze. For a long while, the pair only stared at one another, silently daring the other to say something, to make the first move.  
  
Before Kurama was aware of it, Hiei had dashed forward and grabbed hold of his hair, pulling his silver head back to angle his wound up. The youko frowned in confusion, failing to arrive at any sort of answer as to what the fire youkai may be up to.  
  
"What are you…" Kurama was cut off by a quick jerk on his hair. Slight fiery nips lanced across his scalp. He snarled and spat curses at the shorter demon, suddenly fighting hard to get free as Hiei lifted a necklace to his temple.   
  
The youko screamed in pain as a burning sting lanced through his head. He didn't even notice as the hand in his hair loosed considerably at his screech. The blistering sensation was one of the most exquisitely painful torments he could ever recall. It seemed like hours before the torturous agony subsided, and he was woozily trying to get his vision to focus.  
  
Kurama felt his leaden eyelids begin to slide shut as his head fell forward, red locks dangling hazily before his eyes. Within moments, he was out like a light.  
  
A few seconds later, a katana sliced through his binds.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
"Should we wait until they finish each other off?" Yusuke asked, still perched on the top step high above the brawling demons below.  
  
"What's the matter Urameshi, afraid of a couple of girls?" Kuwabara snickered.  
  
"At least I'm not afraid of my sister!"  
  
Down below them, the two demons had worn each other down, bruised and bloodied. Leiko panted heavily as she looked at her opponent. It had been a more difficult fight than she had expected. However, she wasn't about to lose to the idiot before her.  
  
"I'm going to kill you."  
  
"Why?" Alika asked.  
  
"You sent invaders into my territory."  
  
Alika blinked. It hadn't been intentional. Yet, anything to have Youko Kurama taken care of was justified. It was the least the kitsune deserved.   
  
"I had my reasons."  
  
"And so I have mine, now you die," Leiko said, charging at her opponent, connecting with a right hook. Alika tumbled backwards finally coming to a stop in a crouched position before pushing off against the ground to rush forward. When she got in front of the white demoness, she jumped up into the air, twisting her body to drop behind her, fist already extended. Alika had barely touched the ground before throwing her fist on the already turning Leiko.   
  
The cat demon flew backwards, eventually skidding to a halt on her back. She directed a glare at her opponent, kipping up to her feet to find herself on the defensive as Alika continued her assault.  
  
The three up above watched with interest at the two bodies twisting around each other, occasionally landing a blow to the other.   
  
Suddenly, a flash of black flitted before their vision before disappearing again.  
  
"Hiei…?" Yusuke called out, but his attention was soon directed back to the fight below them as first one demoness fell, as if struck by an unseen force, and then the other. Blood immediately began flowing from what were surely fatal wounds.  
  
In an instant, Hiei was standing beside them, sheathing his already cleaned sword.  
  
"Why'd you kill both of them?" Yusuke asked.  
  
"They both deserved to die." Without another word, Hiei turned to walk back towards the temple. He was soon followed by the other three.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Kurama moaned at the throbbing in his head as he cracked open his eyes. The light flowing into the room seemed to sear his retinas as he clamped his lids shut again; face scrunching up in pain, hand rising to his head.   
  
He had caught the outlines of people crowded around him, but as to who they were, he couldn't tell.  
  
"C'mon Kurama, it can't hurt that bad. I know you're tougher than that," Yusuke's voice sounded, beating painfully on his eardrums with its volume.  
  
"Yusuke… you have no idea."  
  
"You can easily walk away with gaping stomach wounds but you can't handle a little headache?"  
  
He answered with a groan.  
  
"Well, I'll be around if you need me," Yusuke said, patting his shoulder before getting up and apparently pulling someone else with him, from the sounds of it. When he heard a squawk of protest from Kuwabara, he realized who it must've been.  
  
The kitsune thought he was alone until a slight rustling of cloth and some quiet footsteps walked up to him.  
  
He risked opening his eyes again to see who it was. He found himself looking up into jeweled rubies of color, shining with worry and hesitancy.  
  
"Hiei…" he smiled weakly, reaching out for the fire youkai.  
  
"Are you… all right?"   
  
As if to demonstrate, Kurama pushed himself up onto his elbows, seeing for the first time that he was in Genkai's temple still.  
  
"Yes, I'll be fine. Thank you."  
  
"What do you… remember?"  
  
"Remember?" Kurama asked, eyebrows pulling downwards in confusion.  
  
"About when you were tied up?"  
  
"Oh," Kurama said, understanding dawning on his face as memories flooded back to him. Yes, he recalled Hiei professing feelings for him, and the taste of the youkai's skin as he had sought to gain his freedom.  
  
"I'm sorry," Kurama said, head drooping down slightly. A sudden rigidness in the person beside made him realize that he had been misunderstood. Before Hiei could flit away, he grabbed the jaganshi's arm, looking up into his frozen eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry I wasn't untied to show you this…" Kurama said, reaching up to lace his fingers around Hiei's neck and bring the jaganshi down to meet him, tightly pressing his lips against the jaganshi's own.  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
Kurama looked up from where he was doing his homework as the front door opened. His mother came in, bags in hand as she smiled at him. Immediately, he rushed forward to help her.  
  
"How was your trip, mother?"  
  
"Oh, about as good as can be expected," she replied, "what about you? Anything exciting happen while I was gone?"  
  
Kurama briefly pictured what her reaction would be to the truth. "No mother, it was rather boring."  
  
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A/N: Well, I FINALLY finished. I realize there are a few questions that I probably didn't answer, but the reason for that is simple. There are no answers! 


End file.
